


Tell Me Would You Kill, To Save A Life?

by Velocity_Owl87



Series: Loup!Verse [8]
Category: Hockey RPF, Real Person Fiction
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, Mpreg, Multi, Violence, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-10
Updated: 2011-11-10
Packaged: 2017-10-25 22:00:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,292
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/275279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Velocity_Owl87/pseuds/Velocity_Owl87
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It should have been an easy diplomatic job for Henrik-walk in, smooth over the ruffled feathers and strike up a deal. He didn't bargain for grudge nursing, violent and bitter backwoods loups. Now he has to figure out how to get the hell out with minimal bloodloss. Namely, his own.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Tell Me Would You Kill, To Save a Life?

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own these people, nor do werewolves exist. I don't think the NHL employ them either. Song and title belong to 30 Seconds to Mars.

“ _Tell me would you kill, to save a life_

 _Tell me would you kill to prove you're right?” 30 Seconds to Mars_

“ _You will be careful? They aren't exactly happy with the Courts at the moment, and the last thing I want is for you to get involved and hurt. I don't think your brother would ever forgive me.” Sid said to Henke as he watched him pull on his jacket, the paperwork on his desk forgotten for the moment._

“ _I can fight, Sid. Even though as a diplomat, I've not had to do it often. And I've got Tuukka with me. He's more than enough backup.Besides, we're not there to start anything. Or at least that's the plan. If it doesn't work out, we pull out. No questions asked.”_

 _Sid nodded in agreement before he stood up and kissed Henke passionately, all lips and tongue, but still a kiss that made Henke light-headed when Sid pulled away._

“ _I'll see you later.” Sid told him. “I've got plans for us, so be ready.”_

 _Henke smiled before he pressed a kiss on the corner of his mate's mouth._

“ _Always.”_

 _~*~*~*~*~_

“Why are you here?” Jean-Paul Leblanc asked Henrik and Rask as they entered the large living room of the farmhouse that Henrik would guess had been there for at least two hundred years. It had been built well and probably by the sire of the loup in front of him, who was glaring at him with undisguised anger and suspicion in the depths of his green eyes.

Rask scowled at the question, but didn't rise to the bait. He wasn't there to cause problems. He only wanted to smooth over what clearly was a clusterfuck of a situation. He still hadn't forgotten that Leblanc and his Clan had tried to take his mate away from him, and as much as he hated having to come and smooth things over with Henrik, he had been ordered by his Susi and that had been the end of that. Even if he privately thought that Claude's clan was full of in-bred assholes.

“Mr. Leblanc, I'm Henrik Lundqvist and this is Tuukka Rask, and we're here because-”

“I know who that skinny bastard is. He's the one that stole our youngest from us.” Jean-Paul interrupted as he moved closer to Rask, who only scowled down at him. Henrik stepped in between them quickly and subtly eased them apart before Rask lost control of himself and they would have another territorial dispute on their hands again.

“Claude mated with Tuukka, Mr Leblanc.” Henrik reminded him neutrally. “Claude consented. No one was coerced into anything. I'm here on the behalf of the Eastern Alpha and Rask is here on behalf of the Finnish pack to make matters right between us in regards to Claude's mating out of his clan and territory.

Leblanc snorted, but backed away, his eyes not leaving Tuukka's as he did so.

“And how do you expect to make up for it? He  _stole_  Claude from us after the last war.” Leblanc insisted angrily.

“I only took my mate. I didn't steal him.” Rask finally snapped out, his eyes blazing yellow in his anger. Seeing the untractable nature of both wolves, Henrik sighed and grabbed Rask. He knew a failed diplomatic mission when he saw one. He would just have to report to Sid and to Joel that in the future, they would have to be careful when dealing with the Ontarioais Clan. Extremely careful, since he had a feeling that no matter what they did, they would just infuriate the hell out of them.

“I do apologize for wasting your time, Mr. Leblanc. We shall be taking our leave of your territory.” Henrik cut in smoothly as he forced Rask to walk out the front door and back to their car. They could have easily come in wolf form, but he figured that being in human form was the best way to announce it was a neutral visit.

“ _Be ready for anything, Tuukka. Just in case.”_ Henrik told Tuukka, letting go of the Finnish wolf's arm and moving slightly away from him to give him room.

“ _Way ahead of you. Rinne and Backstrom gave me the heads up before we came.”_ Tuukka replied, his mental voice low as they calmly walked out of the house and towards the car.

“ _Somehow, I'm not surprised.”_  Tuukka commented as they both noticed the six loups on top of the car, chains and bats in their hands as they waited for them to come out.

“ _I'm guessing this happened the last time you were here?”_  Henrik asked as he let his nails and canines shift as he crossed his arms and loosened the silver blades he had hidden under his suit sleeves. He was a diplomat above all, but he wasn't ever going to be stupid enough to go unarmed in an already dangerous place.

“ _There were less last time. Get your silver ready. I got mine.”_ Tuukka reminded him as they pulled apart and waited for the inevitable rush, since Giroux's clan still preferred the old method of fighting and would think that Henrik wasn't going to provide a serious challenge to them. Not like Rask, Rinne , Staal and Giroux had.

“ _On the count of three. Kill them. Sort it out later. One. Two THREE!”_

Tuukka had just finished the word before he leapt at the loup with the bike chain and wrenched it out of his hands. In a move that was simply a blur, he swung it. He connected in a fine spray of bone, blood and brain. The loup's eyes widened, and Tuukka simply wrapped the chain around his neck and snapped it with economical movements before turning his attention to the other two, who were trying to get close to him to do some damage.

“Nice.” Tuukka growled out, a feral snarl on his face as he unlooped the chain and swung it in a wide arc, making the other two with the bats leap out of the way. One tried to get closer, but Tuukka looped the chain around the bat and yanked it out of his hands. The other loup tried to attack, but Tuukka was faster.

He shifted in his loup form and went for the loup's leg and crunched through his knee, bringing the loup down in a crumpled heap before he rushed in for the kill, tearing out his throat quickly. He didn't wait to confirm his second sure kill. He had to kill the last one in case Henrik needed help.

The third opponent had picked up the discarded bat. He moved closer to Tuukka, gauging the distance and how hard he would have to swing in order to make a solid and crippling blow to bring the huge black wolf down and finish him off. Tuukka knew that was what the third loup was aiming for and took the chance. Tuukka, in his rage, didn't even feel it as he jumped on the other loup and wrapped his massive jaws around his skull and bit down. He shook his head and looked for Henrik.

“ _Interesting.”_  He thought approvingly as he noticed Henrik had already dispatched one of the loups with his knives and was working on the other two. But he could also see that even though he was holding his own, they were wearing him down.

It prompted Tuukka to move, and be stopped by a fresh wave of wolves coming in from the forest. Although they weren't as big as he was, they were six in number and enough to give him a challenge. But he welcomed it. He still hadn't gotten over the fact that they had dared to attack Claude, even though they claimed him as one of their own and had muzzled him for their own purposes. It had been hell getting him out, but Tuukka, there wasn't enough blood spilled to wash away the pain they had caused his mate.

Tuukka's lips peeled back in a snarl as he took stock of the loups, whose attention was diverted after Henrik had sunk his last knife into the last loup and stood there, his right arm limp and his chest heaving as he took in the scene in front of him.

“ _Henrik. Take off. I can take care of them. You're injured.”_

Henrik shook his head, and in a flash, he was standing there in his wolf form on all four paws.

“ _Fuck that. If anything happens, I'm a better hostage. But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Now fucking fight, Rask!”_

“ _Couldn't have said it better myself! Are you guys done, because we need to get this show on the road!”_

“ _Staal? Malone? Cheechoo? What the fuck?”_ Tuukka snarled as he stepped back and watched the three loups bound in and start grappling with the Clan loups.

“ _Crosby's not stupid and took your mate's advice. Start fighting!”_ Cheechoo shouted, and that was enough to snap him out of his trance and lose himself in the berserker rage of his Tracker blood.

~*~*~*~*~

“How does it feel to be the martyr, Lundqvist?” Leblanc asked him as he struggled to get loose from the battered loups that held him. It was a futile and defiant gesture, since they had broken his arm and several ribs as well as his nose, but he still tried. It wasn't in his nature to give up, no matter how daunting the odds. Nor was he going to bow down to any loup freely other than his Ulfric. He would put up a fight till the end, even if it hurt.

Henrik's eyes flashed green, but he didn't reply. Even though he had a great retort on the tip of his tongue, he held it back. Diplomat till the end. Plus there was the fact that loups and men like Leblanc want to be verbally defied and silence was the best weapon to use in this case.

Especially since the East and the European Collective had the upper hand in this protracted skirmish. They had captured him, but he had known that would have been a possibility in coming out to the Clan land. But they hadn't found it an easy capture. That had been enough to piss Leblanc off already. Henrik's prolonged silence and his refusal to kneel had been the icing on that cake and a calculated enough insult that would do more than mouthing off ever would.

Henrik was right, since Leblanc's next move was to slap Henrik hard enough to turn his head and make a flash of pain flare behind his eyes as it aggravated his nose. It was the move of a frustrated loup, and Henrik privately had to smile over the loss of control he had forced in the Clan Alpha. Point for him.

“Throw him in the cellar. We'll start dealing with him and his kind later.” Leblanc ordered harshly before stalking off and leaving Henrik to be dragged off to his prison, which amounted to being a dusty and dirty hole in the ground covered by an iron grill with enough silver to be painful and a trapdoor over that. He grunted when they threw him in, but he didn't make anymore sounds. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing him in pain.

He curled up in the nest of straw and rags in the corner and closed his eyes, reaching out for the mind of his mate or anyone that could be of help to him. He didn't intend to be a guest of Leblanc and his Clan for long if he could help it.

Not when there was a deadline to be met.

~*~*~*~*~

Sharpie sat up in bed and tried to forget the nightmares that had yanked him out of a deep and peaceful sleep.

“What's wrong?” Jonathan asked him sleepily as he sat up and looked blearily at the alarm clock before smoothing Sharpie's hair back. Sharpie didn't reply right away as he swallowed down the bitter tang of fear and unease that the dream images had left behind.

“I don't know.” Sharpie replied as he scrubbed his face with his hand before turning to look at his mate. “I really don't know.”

Jonathan frowned at that and sat up to wrap his arms around his mate. “Not a nightmare?”

Sharpie shook his head. “Didn't feel like it, to be honest.”

Jonathan frowned at that. “What did it feel like, if you don't mind me asking?”

Sharpie closed his eyes and focused on the question. It felt wrong to him, because the images didn't feel like they were his own. They were off slightly in a way that he couldn't quite put his finger on.

“It felt like...like I was seeing...oh fuck...” Sharpie trailed off as he tried to remember the images before they slipped away. Once he had cemented them to memory as much as he was able to, he turned to Jonathan, who was fully awake and waiting for what step they needed to take next.

“We need to call the Alphas and the Trackers. And fast.”

Jonathan nodded and reached over for his mobile, which rang the exact moment he had picked it up and made him nearly drop it.

“Fucking hell! Christ! Hello? Jose? Yeah. I know. Sharpie and I are getting on it.” Jonathan replied while Sharpie picked up his ringing phone and answered it.

“Hello?” Sharpie answered as he got out of bed and pulled yesterday's clothes on.

“Sharpie. It's Shel, and I've got Carey and Sid here also.Did you have any nightmares tonight?”


	2. No Matter How Many Death I would Die, I Will Never Forget

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In the wake of the gravest loss of his life, Crosby decides the only answer is all out war. Meanwhile, Henrik isn't sitting idly by...but there are limits to what he can do to ensure his freedom.

“ _No matter how many deaths that I die I will never forget.” 30 Seconds to Mars_

Sid punched the wall when he received the news, making Rask and the other Trackers jump in surprise. Jose and Sheldon remained impassive, while Jonathan exchanged glances with Sharpie. Claude was chewing on his lip and Carey's face was blank, but his eyes were full on black as he looked at the hole that Sidney had made in the heavy oak panel of his office.Sid had never lost control like that before, and it unnerved them severely. But then, Sid had never faced the threat of having his mate ripped from him. He had been the victim, never Henke, and that was also something he needed to come to terms with.

Right after they got his Henke back.

That was the reason why they were all gathered in his office, with all of them watching and waiting for the next move in the game that the Clan had started. A move that would dictate how the rest of the game would go. At the least, it would be him fighting the strongest of the Clan. At the worst, it would be a civil war in the Eastern Territory. Whatever the outcome, he was going to make them pay for daring to attack not just his mate, but a diplomat and brother to the Swedish Ulfric.

“They've broken the laws we had set up in regards to diplomats and safe passage.” Sid hissed out, as he walked away from the wall and shook out his fist to ease the sting of the hit.

“They've taken my mate and attacked a visiting Tracker. We're not going to wait for them to make demands. Not this time.”

Sid growled as he moved to his desk and pressed his palms flat on the surface as his mind whirred with plans and strategies he needed to put into action before they went into action.

The Swedish Vargs muttered between themselves at that and watched Sid carefully as they waited for his next words.

Sid could feel their eyes on him and it unnerved him, but he pushed his fears and his hesitation down. He couldn't afford to fall apart now. Nor could he make a mistake when addressing the very loups that were going to back him in his all or nothing campaign. So he had to put on a good front for not just the Swedes, but everyone else gathered in his office.

There was no question in his mind that he was going to do everything in his power to get his mate back. It wasn't just a matter of his pride and his rule being challenged. He knew that he had replaced one of the relatives of the Clan, and he had anticipated trouble. But not of this magnitude. It was also the matter of his soul being ripped to shreds if they executed his mate. Although he had the example in Jose and Sheldon, he didn't want to test the theory out for himself.

He had to srike and strike brutally. He knew the rules of Kingship.

He just didn't think that it was going to come so soon after he assumed the role of an Alpha.

“We're heading out tomorrow. I want all the Trackers here. I also want Gagner and Hall to be ready. I want to annihilate that fucking Clan off the face of the earth. We're going to leave in six hours. Be ready.” Sid ordered them harshly, his eyes a cold green as he spoke. He was about to speak to bring the meeting to a close when the silence was broken by one of his own loups.

“Do we have a choice to opt out?” Claude rasped out, his voice still suffering from the effects of muzzling. Tuukka scowled and moved closer to his mate, subtly pulling him close. Everyone else pretended to not stare, but they were keeping close tabs on what would happen next.

Sid looked at him with narrowed eyes as he considered the question. He had a suspicion that his next words would cement his standing among the other Alphas. He had learned his lesson, watching Tazer and how he had reacted when he was under pressure, and he was determined to not make the mistakes of his Western counterpart. Although he had hoped that Giroux would have been part of his troops, he was well aware of all the damage Giroux had suffered previously at the hands of Leblanc. He was also very highly aware that if he put Giroux in any sort of danger, Rask would have his head on a platter, and Rask was one of the loups that he hoped to  _never_  piss off or be on the opposite side of.

“I understand that it is your Clan, Giroux. I also know that they have attacked you already, and you're in more danger than my mate at this point in time. No one here will think less of you if you choose to opt out of this. We need intel and considering everything that has happened, I'd rather you fulfill that role for us also. Do you accept?” Sid asked, his voice softening slightly as he took in Claude's extremely pale face and Rask's concern leaking through despite his best efforts to not show it.

Claude exchanged a glance with Tuukka, who nodded, before Claude turned to look at Sid.

“I do. Everything I know of my Clan your troops will know before daybreak.” Claude answered.

Sid allowed himself a faint smile before he stood up straight and looked at the rest of the loups, who were still watching him warily, but with less apprehension than they had at the beginning of their war room council.

“Is there anyone else wanting to choose the same path as Giroux?”

Everyone looked around the room, the Swedish Trackers daring anyone to come forward and refuse to fight for one of their own vargs.

“Then it is done. We shall meet here in four hours.Meeting adjourned.”

~*~*~*~*~

“We made a good move with him, didn't we?” Jonas asked Sheldon as he handed him and his mate cups of coffee. He put his own cup down and brought sugar and cream to the table along with spoons to fix their coffee as they wanted.

“He's a quick study. We just have to see how well he does in the field.” Sheldon replied as he stirred cream and sugar into his coffee.

“Actually, I'd be more concerned for the Clan, to be honest. Especially if they have harmed Henke.” Jose added as he picked up his cup and took a sip of his coffee.

Sheldon and Jonas exchanged glances as they drank their own coffee. Both had suspicions in regards to Sidney's uncharacteristic rage, but didn't want to voice them until they had concrete proof. Kaner's visions had been maddeningly absent as of late and Tazer had politely absented himself from any field work to spend time rebuilding his relationship with his mate and to take care of him also.

Jose caught the tail end of this exchange, but said nothing. He had an idea after standing so close to Sidney, what it could be, but he wasn't hedging his bets just yet.

“Do you think they will send any messages before we go out?” Jose asked as he sat down.

“I don't know. But at this point in time, it doesn't matter. Sid has to go forward in this. Neither his own court nor the Swedes will let him back down. He needs to solidify his position as Alpha.”

Sheldon replied, putting his cup down and looking at his mate and Hiller.

“And if he dies when fighting?” Hiller asked.

“He won't. It's not his time.”

~*~*~*~*~

“Wake up,  _Suedois._ ”

The words were followed by a splash of icy cold water that took Henke from being asleep to being wide awake and aware of all the injuries that had been inflicted on him.

He gasped and wiped his face with his sleeve and glared at Jean-Paul and the two flunkies standing beside him and looking down at Henke through the bars of his prison.

Henke made it to his feet, his broken arm held tightly to his chest while his other hand was going to the small dagger he had hidden in the waistband of his trousers.

Jean Paul smirked at him and signalled for the grill to be pulled off, stepping out of range for Henke's small dagger to be of use. Henke cursed under his breath and before he could make another move, he was yanked out of the cellar and forced on his knees faster than he could blink. Cursing at his captors, he fought against them, but when one of them yanked his injured arm, he was done for.

“Stop fighting. Things will go easier if you co-operate with us.” Jean Paul told him as he knelt in front of Henke, who was gasping in pain and trying to not cry with it.

“And what will that get me? A quicker death?” Henke rasped out, his eyes bleeding colour as he spoke. Although the pain was making his thinking fuzzy, he forced himself to get past it. He closed his eyes briefly and went through the plan he had worked out right before he had fallen asleep.

“If you co-operate, then-”Jean Paul stopped talking when Henke shifted and tore the throat of one of the loups holding him and then sliced the throat of the other in the space of a minute, leaving them to drown in their own blood while he focused on destroying Jean Paul.

For his part, Jean Paul shifted and lunged at Henke, bowling him over and leaping on him, snapping his jaws mere inches from his face before Henrik found the strength from somwhere to shove him off, tearing his belly in the process. Jean Paul snarled and yipped, but Henke didn't give him anymore attention and looked for the nearest exit he could find. He wasn't going to stay here any longer than he had to, now that they knew. The fact that his suspicions were now concrete made him determined to flee before his mate and the Courts and his packmates could get to him. He wouldn't take the risk.

Henke paused only to let his sense of direction kick in before choosing to go North-East and cross into the Courtlands there. It would be a long and hard journey, but he had to at least try to make it. Having decided on this course of action, he loped out of the courtyard and headed into the woods.

He ran hard, pushing himself, despite knowing that he was asking too much of his body. He had pulled the healing trick twice already, and even though they had fed him and let him sleep, it was still taxing enough for him to know with certainty that if anything happened to him, he would be out for the count.

That fear made him careful as he crossed the woods. But it didn't save him from getting his hind leg snapped up in a trap, the metal jaws crushing the bone and leaving him crippled and mad with pain. He struggled briefly against the trap, but stopped when a fresh burst of pain hit him, and he couldn't keep quiet.

His howling brought more loups into the vicinity, all of them surrounding him like the prey he knew he was. He was sobbing with pain, shifting back into his human form with agonizing slowness when Jean Paul limped through the circle.

He knelt down in front of Henke, grabbed a fistful of hair and forced the varg to look at him. Henke did, through eyes blurred with tears and blood, and he wished he hadn't.

“You have no choice now, you stupid bastard. No choice at all.” Jean Paul turned away for a brief moment and barked out an order in French.

Henke gasped when he heard the metallic scraping of the trap being sprung open and his leg carefully released from the metal teeth that had mangled it into uselessness. Jean Paul made a noise and gave another order before he turned his attention back to Henke.

“Despite the rules I have broken, I won't break that one. We're too few to squander, and you have killed enough of my wolves already. You and yours will take their place.”

That was the last thing that Henke remembered hearing before Jean Paul drew his hand back and smacked him full across the face.

~*~*~*~*~

The next time Henke woke up, he was lying on a plain bed with a blanket drawn over him. He turned his head and saw the door of the room was barred and the windows again had metal bars across them. He couldn't escape, even if he had been healthy enough to do so. He sighed and lifted himself up on his elbows before he lifted the blanket and looked under it.

“Fucking great.” Henke muttered when he saw his leg was braced and heavily bandaged all the way up to his hip. Although he was grateful that they had seen fit to give him that much medical aid, he knew that he was under Jean Paul's mercy. His gambit had failed and he had no choice but to either trust that Jean Paul would keep his word.

Or to pray and hope that Sidney woud get there shortly.

He sighed and let the blanket fall back into place, before he laid back on the bed and stared at the ceiling while resisting the urge to rest his palms on his abdomen.

Instead, he closed his eyes and poured the last reserves of his strength into his telepathy.

“ _Get here, Sid. Get here and burn this place to the fucking ground before they never let us go.”_

 _~*~*~*~*~*~_

Sharpie clutched his head when the strength of the message hit him, making Jonathan and Sid rush over to him in concern while Adam and Linus looked on worriedly. When it was done, he was as white as a sheet and weak, but he was still able to give one of his sardonic smiles to his mate and friends.

“I figured out the reason for the nightmares, at least. Henke's  _loud._ ”

In the other wing, Carey cried out, and it was only the combined efforts of Shane and Danny that kept him from doing a faceplant on the carpet.

In the room next to theirs,Sheldon winced and pressed the palms of his hands into his eye sockets, breathing heavily as the force of Henke's message hit him.

“ _Perkele! Perkele!”_  Tuukka swore, his eyes turning a bright amber at Henke's words, while Claude only bit his lip and turned away, neither of them able to look at Sheldon and Jose.

“What is wrong? What is it?” Jose asked Sheldon once he had lowered his hands from his face.

“Get Sid. We have to go in, and we have to go now. Henrik's not got time to spare.”


	3. Crash, Crash, Burn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The fight for Henke begins and Crosby pulls out all the stops to end it once and for all.

“ _Crash, Crash_

 _Burn, let it all burn_

 _This hurricane's chasing us underground” 30 Seconds to Mars_

Tuukka sighed impatiently as he sat in the back of the van that his mate was driving. They didn't have that far to go, according to the knowledge that Claude and the Staals kept feeding him whenever he got too antsy and his feral side started to come out into the forefront.

He hated travelling by cars to go to battle. His Pack had always done it in their wolf forms and had pushed hard through the terrain and had fought until they or the enemy were dead and blood soaked through the snows into the permafrost underneath. That had been his introduction to war. Not this.

“ _I know that. But we need to keep our strength if we're going to smash them into the ground.”_ Max shot at him and Tuukka instantly felt calmer and that made him scowl. Although he was thankful that was the case, he really fucking  _hated_  Empaths and was again glad that his Claude was a telepath like him.

“ _Keep your fucking powers in check, Talbot.”_  Tuukka growled out, but it was with less acerbity than what his usual replies were laced with. Talbot only smirked at him and sat back, pulling on the fingerless gloves he had opted to wear for the mission. Tuukka watched him until he caught one of the Staals that didn't play with the Fench Canadian make a comment on Talbot's recklessness at teasing Tuukka.

“Gotta keep in practice before we get to our targets.” Talbot replied, winking at Tuukka, who bared his fangs at him in reply. This only made Talbot laugh and wink at him.

Although he was irritated, Tuukka had to admit that Talbot's little jokes and teasing had dissipated the tension among them on the eve of the battle. Although Tuukka and Talbot and Claude were old hands at conflict, roughly half of their force weren't.

“Besides, the pups gotta know how to properly face battle.” Talbot added as he looked at Hall, Eberle and Holtby. Although they were doing their best to look as nonchalant and as hardened as the rest of the loups in the van, their nervousness was so obvious that the adults could almost taste it in the air.

Tuukka didn't scowl or make any snide remarks at that observation, because it was true. He privately thought it was high time that the brats got their first taste of war, since he did come from a land where having a standing army was a must. But he could also understand the reluctance to send the Heirs out to fight, as well as the reluctance of Holtby to go and leave his mate and newborn pup. Pack and family came above everything and at least Holtby's mate and pup would be provided for if he fell in battle.

“They'll be in loup form. Instinct's going to take over.” Jordan Staal muttered as he looked out the window and frowned at the darkness and at the trees that were out there.

“True. But being fucking nervous isn't going to help them in the heat of battle. It's stupid to simply rely on instinct to get you through these things.” Tuukka growled out.

“Besides, we could just be a guard if they decide to settle it in a challenge.” Claude added, making the pups turn and fix their entire attention on Claude, who kept his eyes on the road.

“My Clan was pissed about Sid being chosen as the Alpha without their consent and all that. They had gotten used to being the pool where the Alphas were chosen. But they never did come out and say anything. So it's a possibility.” Giroux explained quietly.

“Well, that's a shit alternative.” Hall muttered as the implications sunk in.

“Yeah. It is.”

~*~*~*~*~

 _He's dreaming. He knows this by how muted the colours are and the way that he's lying in bed with Sid curled up beside him. It's warm and he doesn't remember there ever being abstract patterns on the sheets. He hates that he notices those things when he's got his mate lying next to him. That should be the most important thing and the knowledge of the mundane details is what tells him he's sleeping. He wouldn't be so abstracted if he had been awake._

 _He knows it for sure though, when Sharp comes out of the en-suite bathroom and Tuukka is standing in the doorway, and while Sharp is looking at him with sympathy, Tuukka is scowling and looking as murderous as ever._

 _He knows that they aren't part of his dreamscape, and this makes him sit up and look at both of the wolves that have come into his mind. This is a much needed answer to the messages he had been sending out to everyone in vain hopes that they could hear him and come fast._

“ _We're coming, Henrik. Just hold tight. We're not that far away from here. Just hold on.” Sharp tells him as he walks over to the bed._

“ _Sid can't answer you. But we can. And we're coming. So don't fucking die, because I'm not in the mood to take your brother's bitching.” Tuukka added before he punched the wall._

Henrik snapped awake, and he had to focus on the bare timbers of the ceiling for a couple of moments to calm his breathing. They had heard. They were coming and that made his heart skip a couple of beats and his hands travel to his stomach. He was going to be safe. It was just a matter of time.

Henrik had just managed to get himself to a sitting position when Jean Paul opened the door and stormed into the room. Henrik's throat went dry at the intrusion, and he forced himself to remain calm, even though his mind and heart were racing at the sight of Jean Paul's bright eyes and thinned out mouth. He wasn't happy, that was for certain. Henrik just hoped that whatever he dished out, it would be something that he would be able to handle until his pack mates got there to help him.

Jean Paul stood staring at Henrik for several seconds before he hit Henrik so hard that his head snapped back and blood splattered all over the wall.

“You fucking bastard! You have killed us all!” Jean Paul screamed at him as he grabbed Henrik and smashed his head against the wall behind him until Henrik slid from his grasp to land limply on the bed. His face was a welter of bruises and open cuts and his breathing was shallow.

Although he was in pain, he was more afraid of what Jean Paul could do him now that he was utterly defenseless and at his mercy.

“You planned this all, didn't you? When you let that bastard go...you knew it!” Jean Paul hissed as he climbed over Henrik's body and straddled him, his hands buried in Henke's hair as he forced the injured loup to look at him.

“Did you think that no one would come after what you did? You broke one of the cardinal rules of hospitality. What did you think would happen? Crosby's the Alpha. He's within-” Henrik replied thickly.

Jean Paul snarled at that, his fingers tightening convulsively in Henke's hair, making his eyes water in fresh pain.

“ _HE'S NOT THE ALPHA! WE DIDN'T CHOOSE HIM!”_ He roared, making Henke swallow hard at the vehemence in the loup's voice.

“It is  _our_  right and our sole domain to provide the Alphas to the Eastern Packs. That was the deal we made with the Regent and his court! It had always been that way, and now that the Regent is gone and LeClaire dead, the West and your kind think you can take that priviledge away from us? Even after all this time, the sacrifice we offered...no. We won't give it up!” Jean Paul snarled out.

“It's too late for that.” Henrik blurted out.

Whatever Jean Paul was going to say was lost when a pup, barely older than Hall and Eberle, burst into the room. His face was bloody, and he looked terrified as hell.

“We have to go! They've overrun the place, and we can't hold them back! We need to go!”

The pup shrieked hysterically as he reached over to grab the arm of his leader to pull him away from Henke.

“How many are there?” Jean Paul asked as he jumped off Henke and faced his subordinate.

“The whole Court! If we don't go now, we're dead! They've already gotten half of us!”

Jean Paul blanched at the news, but refused to show the pup how much the news affected him. Half his fighting force, was already gone and he hadn't a fucking clue that it was happening. He swallowed hard and looked at Henke, who was watching him warily through his tangled hair. At least he had that much of a gambit left.

“Fine. Grab him. You know where you're supposed to go. I'll deal with the rest.”

“No! You have to go! Réal sent me to get you out! We have to go now!” The pup exclaimed frantically. Jean Paul only shook his head at the request and put his hands on the pup to calm him down.

“Etienne, it's lost if I go. We can't do that. We can't give up like this, _mon fils_. So listen to what I tell you. Take this one to the save house and stay there. Take your brothers and your cousins, whoever has survived and wait for us there. He's going to guarantee your safety. So go. Do as I say,  _mon fils._ ”

Etienne bit his lip as he looked from his father to the wolf that lay on the bed watching them both. He didn't want to leave his father there. His uncles had been clear on his orders, but this was his  _father_  telling him to leave and safe himself and the rest of their Clan and he had been taught as a young pup to always ensure the survival of the Clan first. Despite having a horrible feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach, he knew that he was going to have to listen to his father's orders and do as he was told.

“Bon. I'll take him then.” Etienne agreed after several moments. He hurried over to the bed and in quick, efficient motions, bundled Henrik up in the blanket and carried him out of the room.

It had happened so fast that Henrik didn't have time to do anything except squawk out a feeble protest at being handled like a sack of potatoes.

“Stay safe,  _pere._ ” Etienne called out to his father as he legged it out of the house, not waiting to hear the reply to that, but instinctively knowing that it would have been something similar.

Jean Paul watched his son leave and steeled himself. After all, this had been the end goal.

~*~*~*~*~

“ _Where is he? Where is he?”_  Sharpie winced at the mental roar of Crosby's mind as their troop rushed over the cleared terrain of the Ontarioais Clan, taking down whichever loups were stupid enough or stubborn enough to attack. Although they were vicious, Sidney's fury made him a force to be reckined with anjd had balanced out the fight despite the size and number discrepancy between the two forces.

“ _We'll find him, Crosby. Now shut up and fight! There's a vanguard ahead!”_ Tuukka snarled out as he bounded ahead, the Staals hot on his heels while Hall, Eberle and Paajarvi yipped out and skittered after him.

The element of surprise had worked quite well in their favour and they had managed to infiltrate the land of the Clan fairly easily. Until the Fenno-Swede Backstrom had gotten impatient and sloppy with a kill and had tripped off the alarm, calling forth a wave of loups larger than they had ever seen in their war experience.

“ _Oh fucking SHIT!”_  Holtby had yelled when he saw them, making Tootoo and Cheechoo laugh as they moved on ahead with Gionta and Letang trailing after them. Coburn gave out a noise that could have been a yip or a laugh and leapt up on another loup who had came out of the woods that had been intent on attacking Crosby.

“ _This is fucking ridiculous!”_ Carey snarled out as he tackled down a black loup that was as big as he was to the ground. The loup snarled back at Carey and bucked him off, starting the process over again and leaving Carey to huff his annoyance and go once more into the fray.

Sid barked in agreement and pushed ahead, eager to find his mate when he heard Sheldon call out in surprise alongside Theodore.

“ _We're close. We just found a nest full of pups! Sweet Jesus! Crosby! Get your ass over here!”_ Sheldon yelled out, making Max and Nicky Lars yip their concern and head in that direction.

Crosby howled and turned to go in the direction of Sheldon's call when he was stopped by the biggest loup he had ever encountered. Bigger even than Sheldon and Carey, and they were the biggest loups he had ever seen in any of the Courts and circles he had travelled in.

Sid backed away slightly and wondered who the hell the big loup was. He looked around for some of the telepaths when he heard Claude's voice in his head.

“ _Bonne chance, Crosby. It's Jean Paul! Be careful. Extremely careful.”_

“ _Thanks for the heads up.”_ Sid replied and Claude pulled away from him, letting him put his all into the battle.

Sid stopped, and the other wolf went into a fighting stance, with his front paws planted deeply into the ground and his head thrust aggressively forward. He showed almost every single fang in his head as he glared at Sid, daring him to move forward and make the first move in what would only be a battle with one winner.

Jean Paul snarled at Sid, and the sound made Sid's hackles raised in unadulterated anger and disgust as the scent of Henke, mixed in with Jean Paul's own scent hit him. Sid gave his own snarl and without hesitation, lunged at Jean Paul from above. Sid landed with a loud thump on top of Jean Paul and brought him down flat on the forest ground and helpless as Jean Paul struggled to work his way out from under Sid's weight. He snarled and howled until he managed to squirm out from under Sid and get back on his feet again.

Sid didn't waste time and charged him, knocking the other loup off his feet again. Sid leapt at him again and sunk his teeth into the back of Jean Paul's neck and pulled at the loose skin and fur. Jean Paul howled at the pain and ran backwards, slamming Sid against the trunk of a pine tree, knocking the wind out of him and making him let go.

Sid “whoofed” and crumpled to the ground, wincing at the stitch in his side. He hoped that it was just a bruise. A very deep bruise rather than broken ribs, or else he was going to be done much quicker than he had ever hoped he would be. He gritted his teeth and stood up, while eyeing Jean Paul thoughtfully. The older loup was circling him warily while he looked for the opening to end Sid once and for all.

He knew that Jean Paul was expecting a cheap shot from the side as he had done before, so he went for the frontal rush instead, bowling him over again and making him land on his back instead. Not wasting the opportunity, Sid threw himself on the splayed wolf.

Jean Paul saw him coming, but was already pinned down and unable to protect his soft underside, so he did the next best thing and used his claws for one attack he knew was more than likely his last. His triumph at feeling fur, skin and muscle tear underneath was short-lived, but at least he would take that feeling with him when the end came.

Sid felt Jean Paul's claws bury themselves deep into his underside, but suppressed the howl of pain building up in his chest, went right for Jean Paul's throat and bit down around his neck, crushing his windpipe and ending Jean Paul without anymore fuss or fighting.

And minus about a litre or so of blood on his part, Sid realized when he shifted without any warning or control and he had to press his hands against his shredded abdomen to keep anything important from spilling out.

“Oh. Sid...” Sharpie breathed out as he ran over to Sid's side and looked down at the injuries.

“Hang on for Henke, Sid. Hang on.” Sharpie begged as all hell broke loose behind them.

“ _We're coming, Sid. Just wait for us. Wait.”_

“ _Us? I'll wait. I'll-”_


	4. Be Close to me, be where I am

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joel and Henke talk about potential futures.

_Epilogue._

“ _Be close to me  
Be where I am   
Where the wind is hard   
Where the wind is hard   
The night is blue”The Stills_

“I don't want to go back to Are.” Henke told his brother as they sat in the atrium of the hospital with tea cups in hand. Joel frowned at his little brother's stubborn refusal to go back to their pack territory.

“Henke...you're injured and breeding. I know he's your mate, but we don't know-”

“He's going to come back, Joel.” Henke cut him off sharply. “I know this, Joel. He's going to come back. He's not gone. You surely can feel him too.”

Joel frowned, but he didn't contradict his brother. He had reached out and had felt Sid's murky thoughts. As faint as they were, he could feel them and they were steady and not waning. But just in case they disappeared all together, he wanted to take care of his brother and the only way he felt he could do that well was at home, among Pack and family.

“Yes. I can. I'll give you that. But what about after? I admit he's shown backbone...even if it was a bit harsh there...but what if that was his last show of strength?” Joel asked softly. Henke's face darkened at the question, but he had to admit that there was a valid reason for Joel to ask it.

“It's not. Sid's resilient in ways that I didn't even believe possible. He will pull through. I know he will. But Joel...I know that you're looking out for my best interests. I do realize that. But you have to trust me in this one. Please, Joel.”

Joel's eyes darkened as he mulled the situation over and Henke, although trying desperately to keep calm, couldn't help but to be slightly nervous. He could protest all he wanted to, but Joel was his Ulfric and older by a slight edge and could use both to force him to go back. Especially now that he was vulnerable as all out with a messed up leg and breeding.

“ _-Henke...what about Henke?”_

Joel and Henke looked at each other at the stray thought, and Joel smiled grimly as he stood up in a fluid motion. He looked down at his brother and held out his hand to help him up.

“All right, Henke. Go to him for now. But I will not let it rest until I am sure he will be able to take care of you. Just remember that little brother.”

Henke smiled slightly in return. “I know.”

~*~*~*~*~

Sid's eyes felt heavy as he fought to open them. Even though he was exhausted, he knew that he had to just wake up. But he was so tired, he just wanted to sleep, and he was in pain. The wounds that Jean Paul had inflicted on him stung like a motherbitch, and all he wanted to do was make it go away.

“ _But what about Henke?”_ A small voice piped up through the fog, and even though it was almost a stray thought, it was enough to make him push through his exhaustion and force his eyes open.

“Oh!” He heard Henke gasp out, and that made Sid try to sit up and make sure his mate was all right.

“Hey! Easy, Sid. I'm right here. Don't try and sit up. You're going to burst your stitches!” Henke exclaimed as he pushed Sid back onto the pillows, making Sid smile weakly. He laid back, and Henke grabbed a cup of water from the nightstand, and guided it to Sid's mouth. Sid drank down the water gratefully, and it was only when it was empty that Henke took it away.

“Henke...You're okay? He didn't hurt you horribly, did he?” Sid whispered once his throat and tongue didn't feel like sandpaper. Sid groaned at his stupidity when he really looked at Henke's face and became fully aware of the faded bruising and half-healed split in his lip.

“Fuck. That was stupid. I'm sorry I didn't-”

“It's okay, Sid. It's healing. All of it. We're fine. Or will be.” Henke replied as he reached out and took Sid's limp hand into his own.

Sid frowned at the “All of it” comment. Other than the visible marks of a beating...what had...

“ _Nothing like that. I never gave them the chance. I just got my leg caught in a trap when I tried to escape before you got here with the cavalry.”_  Henrik admitted ruefully, making Sid breathe out a sigh of relief at the admission. It was still a horrible injury, but it would heal without the emotional and pyschological scars that kind of abuse brought with it. Sid was utterly thankful that despite being held captive and injured, Henrik was spared that horror.

“ _I know. I really do know that. You're braver than you give yourself credit for, having survived it.I don't know if I would have been that strong. Especially not while I'm carrying your pup and having that happen to me. But no. It didn't and the pup is safe.”_

Hearing that made Sid's eyes widen in surprise. He recalled the dim plea that Henke had made, using the plural form. He had thought that maybe in the heat of the moment, Henke had gotten the pronouns mixed up. But hearing him repeat it, as well as the underlying scent of milk under his usual pine and frost scent made him realize that he wasn't hearing things or that there was a mistake.

“How? I thought it was only the Midwest Pack that could do that. I mean...we've mated before. Why didn't it happen earlier?”

Henke blushed and looked down at his lap as he tried to find the words to explain it to his mate.

“Do I really have to spell it out for you, Sid? What did we do differently the last few times we mated that we hadn't done before?”

Sid frowned at the question, his mind flipping over the particulars when it finally hit him.

“Oh. Oh!” Sid exclaimed, feeling his face turn bright red as he recalled who had been the top the last couple of times that they had mated.

“So. Uhm. Wow. Wow. I just...wow.” Sid tried to come up with something more intelligent to say after he had just been given the news of the one thing he didn't think he could possibly have, but his brain was still dull and fuzzy from the battle and its subsequent after-effects.

Henke, though, understood and only smiled a soft smile as his grip tightened around Sid's hand.

“He's going to come in the Spring sometime.” Henke added as Sid's mouth fell open in shock at getting the one thing he thought he wouldn't ever have a chance at.

“That's just amazing, Henke. But...will you be fine? I mean Adam and Limpan both had problems with their pups. If it's going to-”

Henke shook his head and his smile got wider at his mate's concern for his health. He was both touched and bemused at the interest that Sid was showing for him and the pup. It wasn't that Sid was self-centered or oblivious, but he was used to Henke being so self-sufficient and strong that the matter hadn't come up before. But now that there was another life involved, it made sense.

It also put his mind at ease and answered the question that had always plagued him ever since the November Wars. So instead of brushing it aside with some meaningless words that would have reassured him but not told him anything, Henke answered honestly.

“There are that many advantages to being an Alpha varg and this one is one of them. If I hadn't had that much power behind me, with all Jean Paul did to me...I wouldn't have made it that far. Joel thinks that the pup itself is an Alpha.” Henke explained, his voice shaking slightly as he again remembered the doctor's surprise at the fact that he was still carrying the pup after the shifts and the abuse.

“That's...it's amazing, Henke. Apart from having you back with me, that's the best news I could ever hope to hear. When you were taken...I just thought of killing them all to get to you.” Sid told his mate as he raised his free hand and clumsily caressed Henke's face, which had paled slightly at Sid's words.

“I didn't want to ever lose you like last time. Nor did I ever want you to go through what I went through. And now, knowing that you're carrying my pup...I don't regret making my choices.”

Henrik swallowed hard as he looked at his mate. Despite the pallor and the lines of pain and dark circles under his eyes, he couldn't help but note the steel core that was showing itself in Sid's expression. Although it was a shock, he had to admit that he was relieved to see it.

He could breathe easier now and step back, rather than hover at his elbow like he had since the Wars, afraid that Sidney would break after all. He had been so afraid of that happening, and when Jean Paul had grabbed him, that had been one of his unspoken fears come to horrifying reality. But Sid had proved him wrong.

Henrik was grateful for the realization and made a mental note to contact Joel and let him know that it would be fine among them after all.

In the meantime, he leaned over and kissed his mate in both gratitude and love. Something that Sid returned in spades as well.

The rest would sort itself out in the end.There were pups and loups to settle and territories and treaties to sign. But for now, Sid and his unborn pup were all that mattered to him.

The rest could wait.

END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song title and song quotes are from "I'm with you" by The Stills


End file.
